High negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf says US naval blockade of Iran’s ports is ‘a slipshod and ignorant resolution’.
Revealed On 18 Apr 2026
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGC) says the Strait of Hormuz is closed and that any ship that makes an attempt to move via the waterway shall be focused, a dramatic reversal lower than 24 hours after the crucial transport lane was reopened.
In a press release carried by Iran’s Scholar Information Company, the IRGC navy stated on Saturday the strait shall be closed till america lifts its naval blockade on Iranian vessels and ports. It stated the blockade was a violation of the continued ceasefire settlement within the US-Israel conflict on Iran.
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“We warn that no vessel of any variety ought to transfer from its anchorage within the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman, and approaching the Strait of Hormuz shall be thought-about cooperation with the enemy, and the offending vessel shall be focused,” it stated.
Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker and a senior negotiator in talks between Washington and Tehran on ending the conflict, stated in a tv interview that “the Strait of Hormuz is below the management of the Islamic Republic”.
“The People have been declaring a blockade for a number of days now. It is a clumsy and ignorant resolution,” he added.
The reassertion of management got here simply hours after Iran had briefly reopened the strait, in step with a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon. Oil costs dropped on international markets after Iranian International Minister Abbas Araghchi stated on Friday that the waterway was “utterly open for all business vessels.”
Greater than a dozen business ships handed via the waterway earlier than the IRGC reversed course.
Iranian gunboats reportedly fired on two business ships on Saturday, in line with United Kingdom Maritime Commerce Operations (UKMTO). India’s Ministry of Exterior Affairs additionally stated that two Indian-flagged ships have been concerned in a “capturing incident” within the strait.
Some service provider vessels within the area obtained radio messages from the IRGC Navy, warning that no ships have been being allowed via the strait.
US President Donald Trump stated Tehran couldn’t blackmail Washington by closing the waterway and warned that he would put an finish to the ceasefire if a deal earlier than its expiry on Wednesday shouldn’t be reached. Trump added that the naval blockade would “stay in full power”.
Iranian Supreme Chief Mojtaba Khamenei, in the meantime, stated the navy was able to inflict “new bitter defeats” on its enemies.
‘Two competing blockades’
Al Jazeera correspondent Zein Basravi stated that Iran and the US are again the place they have been the day past.
“Lower than 24 hours in the past, world leaders have been praising what they thought was a breakthrough on this battle, hoping Iran was signalling a confidence-building measure by opening the Strait of Hormuz, probably resulting in a ceasefire deal and a everlasting finish to the conflict,” he stated.
“As disenchanted as folks could also be, this isn’t completely stunning. What we’re seeing now could be a return to sq. one,” he added, saying there are actually “two competing blockades in place”.
Al Jazeera’s Ali Hashem, reporting from Tehran, stated Iran was utilizing the strait to ship a message.
“It’s clear that Iran is coping with a scenario wherein they aren’t positive what’s on the desk. So the Strait of Hormuz is as soon as once more the one area for engagement, even when it’s a unfavourable engagement. And it’s the area the place they’re sending and conveying messages to the People, exhibiting their leverage,” he stated.